Without water for over a week, Solan villagers take to streets

Tribune News Service

Solan, April 25

Holding empty utensils, residents of Maithal village under the Mittian gram panchayat of Nalagarh today protested against the indifferent attitude of the authorities for failing to supply water to them for the last eight days.

Protesting women asked the officials to look into the problem as to why taps in their houses were running dry.

Due to disruption in water supply, people are being forced to trudge 3 to 5 km to get water. The issue of water shortage has been raised with the staff of the Jal Shakti Department (JSD) and the local MLA on several occasions, but to no avail, allege the villagers. Even a pond in the village had dried up.

The villagers raised slogans against the JSD staff and warned that if water supply was not restored soon they would gherao the office of the Nalagarh SDM and also take up the matter with the Solan Deputy Commissioner.

Amar Singh, a villager, said they had not received water for the last one week. “I have superannuated from the JSD after working for 36 years. I have spoken to the department staff and the contractor looking after the scheme as well as the local MLA two days ago, but to no avail,” he said.

JSD SDO Abhishek Mohan Kapil said the problem had come to his notice today and he would ensure that needful was done to provide water to the villagers.

The villagers lamented that those having vehicles managed to get water from nearby areas, but majority of the people were suffering as they had no transport means to fetch water.

Water to the area was supplied from two schemes — comprising a gravity scheme and a lift potable water scheme, but today there was no supply to the village for the last eight days. The villagers said they were unaware as to why water supply was disrupted.

The women lamented that no one was listening to their grievances as water was required both for household use as well as for cattle.

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